The 10 best Ralph Macchio performances that aren’t Daniel LaRusso

Ralph Macchio is back on our screens in season 6 of the brilliant Cobra Kai. In the series, Macchio plays the iconic Daniel LaRusso, the two-time winner of the All Valley Karate Tournament. The New York actor has played LaRusso since 1984 when he appeared in The Karate Kid alongside the late Pat Morita — a role he played in two more movies.

Although Macchio is synonymous with LaRusso, there’s far more to his career than that. In this piece, we’ll look at his best performances away from the Karate Kid franchise, i.e., The Karate Kid, The Karate Kid Part II, The Karate Kid Part III, and Cobra Kai.

10. Chooch Bambalazi in Up the Academy (1980)

In the comedy film Up the Academy, youngsters are sent to a military academy as punishment for their troublemaking. The plot focuses on a group of recruits, including Macchio’s Chooch Bambalazi, the heir to an organized crime family. Robert Downey Sr. directs it, and a young Robert Downey Jr. features as an extra. It’s not good, but Macchio displays clear early dramatic and comedic promise in his movie debut.

9. Chris in Naked in New York (1993)

Naked in New York is a rom-com that follows Jake Briggs (Eric Stoltz) and Joanne White (Mary-Louise Parker), a playwright and photographer who meet in college and embark on a relationship but ultimately split due to conflicting career goals. Macchio plays Chris, Jake’s gay best friend, and gives a charming performance that contributes significantly to what is a humorous, heartwarming, and seductive film.

8. Jack Lambert in Distant Thunder (1988)

The drama film Distant Thunder stars John Lithgow as Mark Lambert and Macchio as his son Jack. Mark is a troubled ex-Navy SEAL and Vietnam War veteran who alienates Jack and his wife when he returns from duty by moving to live in the Washington state wilderness. Upon his return a decade later, deathly trouble ensues. Macchio impeccably conveys his character’s subsequent harrowing fight for survival and has brilliant chemistry with Lithgow.

7. Jeremy Andretti in Eight Is Enough (1980-1981)

Macchio’s first small screen role came in the comedy-drama television series Eight is Enough, which chronicled the lives of a Sacramento, California, family with eight children. Macchio’s role was a recurring supporting one as the family’s troubled nephew Jeremy Andretti, who he played in 19 episodes in 1980 and 1981. It was an early display of his trademark likeability while also convincingly depicting Jeremy’s troubles.

6. Officer Haddix in The Deuce (2017-2019)

Macchio’s recurring role as Officer Haddix in The Deuce is excellent. He played the character in 17 episodes from 2017 until 2019. The show depicts the legitimizing of the sex industry in 1970s New York, and Haddix is a weary vice cop patrolling Times Square in the city’s corrupt police force. It’s not exactly the type of role he’s known for, but he pulls it off with consummate ease.

5. Archie Rodriguez in Ugly Betty (2008-2009)

Macchio had a recurring role in the hugely popular comedy-drama series Ugly Betty. The series followed the unstylish eponymous Betty Suarez after she got a job at a prestigious fashion magazine. Macchio played Archie Rodriguez — a local city council member and a love interest of Betty’s sister Hilda — in 11 episodes in 2008 and 2009. He’s typically affable and someone you can’t help feeling sorry for when Hilda cheats on him.

4. Eddie Pilikian in Teachers (1984)

Teachers is a satirical black comedy-drama movie set in a Columbus, Ohio, high school facing a lawsuit by a former student. Nick Nolte plays Alex Jurel, a veteran social studies teacher who connects well with the students and becomes a mentor to Macchio’s Eddie Pilikian, a rebellious student who can’t read, hates school, and spends most of his time protecting his schizophrenic best friend. Macchio is excellent and pulls off a fedora in the film sublimely.

3. Eugene Martone in Crossroads (1986)

Macchio stars in the musical drama Crossroads as Eugene Martone, a 17-year-old with a fascination for blues music. In the film, Eugene befriends old blues player Willie Brown (Joe Seneca), hoping he can teach him a long-lost song by the legendary blues musician and songwriter Robert Johnson. Macchio and Seneca have a great dynamic, and the former’s surprisingly impressive guitar-playing skills are exhibited.

2. Bill Gambini in My Cousin Vinny (1992)

My Cousin Vinny is a brilliant comedy movie that won Marisa Tomei the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance. It’s about two Alabama, New York college students, Bill Gambini and Stan Rothenstein, put on trial for a murder they didn’t commit. Macchio contributed massively to the film with his performance as Gambini, whose eponymous rookie lawyer cousin helps the students. He perhaps doesn’t have as much to do as you’d expect from an actor with co-star billing, but what he does is fantastic.

1. Johnny Cade in The Outsiders (1983)

The coming-of-age crime drama The Outsiders depicts the 1960s rivalry between two gangs, the poor Greasers and the rich Socs, which grows when one gang member is killed. Macchio plays Johnny Cade, a Greaser who laments his hopeless life to the point of feeling suicidal. He’s tremendous and shines in his gritty role among a talented young all-star cast, including Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Diane Lane, and Rob Lowe.